The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
Topics of Discussion
A. Segregation and Disfranchisement
B. World War II Era
C. Post-War Changes
D. School Desegregation
E. The Montgomery Bus Boycott
F. The Sit-Ins and SNCC
G. The Freedom Rides
H. The Birmingham Campaign
I. The March on Washington
J. Freedom Summer and the Civil Rights Act
K. The Selma March and the Voting Rights Act
L. The End of the Movement
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
Segregation and Disfranchisement
A. Segregation Laws passed in the 1880s and 90s
B. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) -- “separate but equal”
C. All public facilities were segregated in the South:
hospitals, schools, libraries, courtrooms, railcars,
parks, beaches, restaurants, and cemeteries
D. Disfranchisement -- poll tax and literacy test
E Chart on the effectiveness of the poll tax
E.
F. Together, segregation and disfranchisement
destroyed the Constitutional rights of blacks
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
World War II Era
A. The recent struggle for African American
civil rights began during World War II
B. Pittsburg Courier -- Double V Campaign, 1942
C. March on Washington Movement
D. A. Philip Randolph and Walter White
E. Executive Order 8802 – wartime industry
F. Fair Employment Practices Commission
Detroit 1944: Pallbearers with a casket walking
with a sign reading “Here lies Jim Crow" during
the NAACP Detroit branch "Parade for Victory."
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
Post-War Changes
The Truman Administration
A. Civil Rights Commission, 1946
B. To Secure These Rights (1947)
C. Executive Order 9980 (federal workforce) 1948
D. Executive Order 9981 (armed forces) 1948
The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)
D. Non-violent, multi-racial organization, 1942
E. “Journey of Reconciliation” (1947)
F Attempt
F.
Att
t tto enforce
f
M
Morgan
v. Vi
Virginia
i i (1946)
(commerce clause not equal protection; interstate travel)
Jackie Robinson
G. WWII Vet, Star player Kansas City Monarchs
H. Brooklyn Dodgers, 1947
I. Rookie of the Year, 1947; MVP 1949
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
School Desegregation
NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund (1939-1952)
A. Charles Houston and Thurgood Marshall
B. Missouri ex rel. v. Gaines (1938)
Lloyd Gaines sued to enter Missouri
Law School -- Black law school set up
C. Sweatt v. Painter (1950)
Heman Sweatt admitted to U Texas Law School
D. McLaurin v. Oklahoma (1950)
George McLaurin could not be segregated from
white students at the University of Oklahoma
George W. McLaurin sits in an anteroom,
apart from the other students, as he attends
class at the University of Oklahoma in 1948.
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
School Desegregation
Brown v. Board of Education Cases
A. Five Brown cases reach court 1951-52
B. Members of the Court Divided
C. Issues Involved:
- 14th Amendment and equal protection
- Precedent, especially Congress of 1868
- Plessy precedent
D. NAACP lawyers and “doll test”
E. Fred Vinson died Sept 1953; Earl Warren
C. Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
F. Brown v. Board of Education II (1955)
Harold P. Boulware, Thurgood Marshall,
and Spottswood W. Robinson III
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In the 1950s, Kenneth and Mamie Clark asked black children, 3 to 7, a series of questions about some
plastic baby dolls that were identical except for color. Ten of sixteen of the children preferred the white
dolls to the black dolls. Furthermore, they attributed more positive characteristics (e.g., “good” and
“nice”) to the white dolls. The Clarks concluded that “prejudice, discrimination, and segregation” caused
black children to develop a sense of inferiority and self-hatred.
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
School Desegregation
Massive Resistance to Brown v. Board of Education
A. Southern Manifesto, 1956 -- 101 Congressmen
B. Little Rock, 1957-1959
C. Pupil Placement Laws
D. By 1960, on the sixth anniversary of Brown, few
African American students attend desegregated
schools in the South:
98 of Arkansas
Arkansas’ss 104,000
104 000 black students
34 of North Carolina’s 302,000 black students
169 of Tennessee’s 146,000 black students
103 of Virginia’s 203,000 black students
5 deep south states, none of 1.4 million black students
E. By 1963, only 1.06 % of southern blacks attended desegregated schools
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The "Southern Manifesto" (1956)
Signed by 19 US Senators and 81 US Representatives
We regard the decision of the Supreme Court in the
school cases as a clear abuse of judicial power. It
climaxes a trend in the Federal judiciary . . . to encroach
upon the reserved rights of the States and the people.
This unwarranted exercise of power by the Court,
contrary to the Constitution, is creating chaos and
confusion in the States principally affected. It is
destroying the amicable relations between the white and
Negro races that have been created through 90 years of
patient effort by the good people of both races. It has
planted hatred and suspicion where there has been
heretofore friendship and understanding.
With the gravest concern for the explosive and dangerous
condition created by this decision and inflamed by
outside meddlers:
We pledge ourselves to use all lawful means to bring
about a reversal of this decision which is contrary to the
Constitution and to prevent the use of force in its
implementation.
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-1956
A. Local protest in Montgomery, Alabama, where
h lf off city’s
half
it ’ 100
100,000
000 residents
id t were Af
African
i
A
American
i
B. Rosa Parks, seamstress, 12 year secretary
of the local NAACP, trained Highlander Folk School (TN)
C. December 1, 1955 – refused to give up seat
D. December 5, 1955 – MLK – first meeting:
Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA)
E. 381-day boycott of Montgomery buses – company hurt
F. Feb 1956: City obtained indictments against MLK,
Ed Nixon, and 113 other boycotters under a law forbidding
hindrance to business without “just cause or legal excuse.”
G. MLK on trial in March – found guilty; but in June, federal District Court struck down
Montgomery’s segregation ordinances; in November, Supreme Court affirmed ruling.
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Noble Bradford Removes Segregation Sign
Dallas, Texas: Segregation Signs Come Down
Noble Bradford, lead worker in the Dallas Transit Company
body shop, removes a segregation seating sign from the rear of
the bus here, April 25, 1956. The company, complying with a
Supreme Court ruling banning racial segregation on public
transportation within the borders of a state, announced that it
was ending passenger segregation in the 530 buses at once.
A passenger points to one of the segregation signs removed
from all Dallas Transit Company buses, following a Supreme
Court ruling banning segregation on all public
transportation within a state. April 25, 1956.
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-1956
H. When the Montgomery Boycott ended,
MLK was a prominent national figure.
figure
I. NBC’s Meet the Press invited him to be the
second African American on the program
K. King himself was a complex figure
Born 1929 into a middle-class black family in Atlanta
His father was a prominent Baptist minister
He attended Morehouse College
Divinity degree at Crozer Theological Seminary
Ph D iin th
Ph.D.
theology
l
att B
Boston
t U
University
i
it
King admired Mohandas Gandhi
Pastor, Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, Montgomery, 1954
L. 1957: King brought together 100 black ministers
to found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC)
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955-1956
M. In a 1956 address celebrating
g the Montgomery
g
y victory,
y, King
g
laid out six key lessons from the struggle.
(1) We have discovered that we can stick together for a
common cause; (2) Our leaders do not have to sell out; (3)
Threats and violence do not necessarily intimidate those
who are sufficiently aroused and non-violent; (4) Our
church is becoming militant, stressing a social gospel as
well as a gospel of personal salvation; (5) We have gained
a new sense of dignity and destiny; (6) We have
discovered a new and powerful weapon
weapon--non-violent
non violent
resistance.
N. The SCLC called upon black people “to understand that
nonviolence is not a symbol of weakness or cowardice, but as
Jesus demonstrated, nonviolent resistance transforms weakness
into strength and breeds courage in the face of danger.”
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Sit-Ins and SNCC
A. College students from North Carolina A & T
B. Woolworth’s, Greensboro, NC, Feb 1, 1960
C. Next day, two dozen supporters
D. Day three, students occupied 63 of 66 seats
E. Thursday, joined by 3 white students from
the Women’s College, UNC Greensboro
F. By Friday, hundreds jammed Woolworth’s
and others carried the sit-in to S.H. Kress.
G National news: City officials offer to negotiate
G.
negotiate,
but business community refuses to desegregate
H. Sit-ins resume April 1, 1960
I. April 21, 45 students arrested for trespassing
J. African Americans boycott targeted businesses
K. July 25, first African American ate at Woolworth’s.
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Sit-Ins and SNCC
L. Greensboro started a mass movement
M. Next 2 years, 70,000 people participated and
3,000 were arrested in sit-ins
N. New form of direct action protest
O. Nashville and Atlanta major sites
P. In April 1960, 120 black students met
with Ella Baker, executive director SCLC,
in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Q. They formed the Student Non-Violent
Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
R. Played major role in the Freedom Rides, the
March on Washington, and Freedom Summer.
John Lewis, President SNCC
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Freedom Rides
A. Spring 1961: James Farmer, national director
of CORE announced plans for inter-racial
Freedom Rides through the South.
B. “Our intention was to provoke the southern
authorities into arresting us and thereby prod
the Justice Department into enforcing the
law of the land.” -- James Farmer
C. May 4, 1961 -- 7 blacks and six whites split into
two teams -- left D.C. on buses for New Orleans.
D. Would travel through deep south.
James L. Farmer, Jr.
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Freedom Rides
E 5/14/61: Stopped in Anniston
E.
Anniston, Alabama -riders beaten with iron bars and clubs
F. 5/14/61: Riders aboard the second bus
were beaten in Birmingham.
G. 5/17/61: CORE ends its Freedom Rides,
but SNCC sends in fresh volunteers
H. 5/20/61: Freedom Riders were
beaten at Montgomery bus terminal.
I. 5/21/61: Riders imprisoned upon arrival
in Jackson, Mississippi - “Jail, No Bail”
J. 1962: CORE claims victory – Kennedy
Administration has ICC outlaw segregation
on all interstate carriers
Freedom Riders Near Burning Bus
Passengers of this smoking Greyhound bus, sit on the ground
after the bus was set afire 5/14, by a mob of Caucasians who
followed the bus from the city. The mob met the bus at the
terminal, stoned it & slashed the tires, then followed the bus
from town. May 14, 1961
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Wounded Freedom Riders in Alabama
Two blood-splattered Freedom Riders, John Lewis (left)
and James Zwerg (right) stand together after being
attacked and beaten by pro-segregationists in
Montgomery, Alabama. May 20, 1961
Freedom Rider Jim Zwerg in Hospital
Twenty-one year old ministerial student and member
of the Freedom Riders, Jim Zwerg, lies in a hospital
bed after being beaten by pro-segregationists at a
Montgomery, Alabama bus terminal. May 21, 1961
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Birmingham Campaign
A. 4/3/63: SCLC launches Project C (for confrontation) to
protest segregation of lunch counters and rest rooms in
Birmingham, Alabama.
B. 4/12/63: MLK arrested on Good Friday for defying a
state court’s injunction against protest marches. While
confined over Easter weekend, he wrote the “Letter from
Birmingham Jail.”
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Birmingham Campaign
We know through painful experience that freedom is
never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be
demanded by the oppressed. Frankly, I have yet to engage
in a direct-action campaign that was "well timed" in the
view of those who have not suffered unduly from the
disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the
word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every Negro with
piercing familiarity. This "Wait" has almost always meant
'Never." We must come to see, with one of our
distinguished jurists, that "justice too long delayed is
justice denied."
-Martin Luther King Jr.
"Letter from Birmingham Jail"
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Birmingham Campaign
C. 5/2/63: SCLC organizes
g
“children’s crusade,”
, recruiting
g
students for marches. Police Commissioner Eugene ‘Bull’
Connor retaliates with police dogs, fire hoses, and arrests
that fill jails.
D. 5/10/63: MLK and Rev. Fred L. Shuttlesworth working
with mediators from the Justice Department announce that
Birmingham’s white leaders have agreed to a desegregation
plan.
E. That night King’s motel was bombed and a riot raged
until dawn.
dawn
F. Ultimately, President Kennedy ordered 3,000 federal
troops into the city to enforce the law.
G. Although the Birmingham campaign was a success,
leading to desegregation in the city, in September a bomb
killed four black girls at a local church -- racism still
prevalent and powerful in Birmingham.
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The March on Washington
A. In 1963, leaders from the SCLC, SNCC, and CORE
organized a non-violent March on Washington to
d
demonstrate
t t th
the urgency and
d jjustness
t
off th
their
i cause.
B. John F. Kennedy supported the march, saying:
“We face . . . a moral crisis as a country and a people. It
cannot be met by repressive police action. It cannot be
left to increased demonstrations in the streets. It cannot
be quieted by token moves or talk. It is a time to act in
the Congress, in your state and local legislative body,
and, above all, in all our daily lives.” June 11, 1963
C. 8/28/63: More than 250,000 people gather in
Washington, DC to demand action on civil rights
concluding with MLK’s “I Have A Dream” speech.
D. High point of Civil Rights Movement.
E. However, Kennedy killed on November 22, 1963.
F. Legislation would await successor -- Lyndon Johnson.
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
Freedom Summer and the Civil Rights Act
A. 6/1/64: Freedom Summer begins as hundreds of
volunteers arrive in Mississippi to work in the
Mississippi Summer Project organized by SNCC, CORE,
SCLC, and NAACP -- Focus: Voter Registration
B. 7/2/64: President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the
1964 Civil Rights Act outlawing segregation in public
accommodations.
C. 8/4/64: After a six-week search, the bodies of
g Summer Project
j
workers were found
three missing
buried under an earthen dam near Philadelphia,
Mississippi.
D. 12/10/64: Dr. King received the Nobel Peace Prize
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The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The Selma March and Voting Rights Act
3/7/65: “Bloody Sunday,” Alabama troopers and
Dallas County deputies beat and gassed votingrights marchers in Selma, Alabama.
3/15/65: In his “We shall overcome” speech,
President Johnson responded to the events in
Selma by announcing that he was submitting a
Voting Rights Bill to Congress.
3/21/65 Dr. King leads marchers from Selma to
Montgomery After the march
Montgomery.
march, Mrs
Mrs. Viola Liuzzo
Liuzzo, a
marcher from Detroit, was shot to death.
8/6/65 Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act.
The Civil Rights Movement, 1941-1968
The End of the Movement
A. Successful movement to alter the legal and
social order throughout America.
B. Dominated through 1965 by non-violent means.
C. Numerous groups contributed to the effort.
D. In the late 1960s, Black Power groups became
frustrated with the slow implementation of
desegregation and struck out on their own.
E. In 1968, MLK was shot to death in Memphis,
depriving the movement of its most eloquent
leader.
F. However, the civil rights campaign continues on
to this day.
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